There has been a lot of speculation about the fate of Symbian after Nokia and Microsoft announced a partnership to use Windows 7 as the primary platform for Nokia smartphones.
Nokia has now clarified that the development of Symbian will continue, and that devices that were developed earlier will be launched in the coming days as per schedule. However, this will happen only as preparation for the transition to Windows.
Speaking to the media during Mobile World Congress 2011, the chief executive officer of Nokia, Steven Elop, said, “We will continue our work on the Symbian platform as we prepare for the transition.” He said that “Nokia will focus on its developer community in a better way by integrating diverse resources under a single leadership.”
He added that he would like developers to move to the Windows platform in due course of time. The date for the first Nokia smartphone with Windows was not announced, but Elop wants the first device to hit the market this year itself. He also said that Microsoft paid a significant amount to Nokia to use Windows instead of Android.
On the future of MeeGo, he said that Intel was kept in the loop of the partnership with Microsoft, but that the final decision regarding the future of MeeGo with respect to Nokia is still to be worked out.